Only Human
by anti-viper
Summary: One phrase Marceline had nearly forgotten leads her mind down dark paths, as Princess Bubblegum crafts an antidote to save Finn's life. After all, what does it mean to be the last human alive, and so often near death's edge? And how deeply does it ache, for someone who once was human herself and now sees her race reborn, to watch the Princess spurn both his and her own happiness?


_**Only Human**_

It happened every once in awhile, maybe while looking in her enchanted mirror and acknowledging her shift in appearance over her thousand years of existence, or when her feet accidentally scraped against the floor, those thoroughly under-used collections of bone and muscle that stuck out the bottom of her lanky legs suddenly desiring to feel the warmth of the ground.

Marceline would realize she was human. Or, partly, when you considered her demon half. Well… at the very least, had been human once.

Even her given designation, that of Vampire, held humanity within it (though she knew not whether Vampires actually fell under that classification post turning), the first of her kind having been converted humans. And that was what she loved about her title, the fact that it could say that she held humanity within her while barely implying it, just like her body did.

Marceline didn't want to forget humanity all-together… but she had never been fully accepting of the moniker she had won in a game of survival she hadn't even realized she was playing; that of the last human. It was a terrible burden, weighty and thick, all at the same time a memento of humanity's appetite for destruction, its unintentional cultivation of Ooo, and the promise of rebirth.

So Marceline had developed a very convenient amnesia regarding her humanity, never quite letting it fade from her mind but pushing it far enough away so that it would not wane on her (as she did with most difficult things within her life).

Except recently, that amnesia had been tested by a certain doofus she had come across in her return to the province where her cave resided. Oh yes, he made it quite impossible to ignore the discussion of humanity, but even so, his very existence both relieved and terrified her.

She could tell that, to him, she was not human. Her visage was just skewed enough, and her willingness to shift into other forms more than willing, to make him accept the term "Vampire" without possibly pushing past it. She very happy that was the case, as she didn't know how that conversation would go.

In general, she let his ignorance rub off on her; it was much easier, than realizing the brutal facts of a boy in his young teens running around Ooo, experiencing several moments everyday with the outright lethality of literally unzipping your pants and pissing into Death's face.

As she floated in place within the confines of one of the Candy Kingdom's laboratories, a particularly gothic one laced with stone and wooden cabinets, Marceline giggled. She hadn't been allowed back in the Dead-Zone for soooooooo long after that incident.

She knew she was adverting herself from the topic at hand; that the only other person carrying the torch of humanity had nearly found another way to kill himself, to leave her alone on a pedestal of tragedy that she despised, by taking on a Walrus-Fly-Trap of all things. Even Marceline the Mutha-Lumpin' Vampire Queen stayed away from those bad-boys. She was fine with two tiny bite marks on her neck. Not a hole the size of a tusk.

Even after hearing about his condition from a distraught Jake ("He'll live, but if we hadn't found him as soon as we did…"), she had found some way to block herself from considering his mortality. Somehow. Even when she had flown into the infirmary of the Candy Castle and stared at his weak form, his eyes just barely peaking out of a hilarious excess of marshmallow bandages, purple pus from his wounds staining them, she had frowned, but only focused on the positive side, that he was alive.

And even when she had searched the castle for a certain friend of hers, who was quite obviously affected by the boy's condition, much more so than Marceline wagered she could imagine, she had pushed aside the truth at hand. It was only when her friend, cutting the silence every minute with a melancholy comment or worry that she did not have the proper ingredients for the antidote, had unintentionally muttered two words that had immediately twisted the Vampire's head in shock, as if on a swivel.

Marceline hadn't heard the phrase in years, and could have very well forgotten its existence in a few more had it remained absent. For very obvious reasons, it had faded with time, and though it perhaps described Ooo perfectly, one word within the phrase kept it from working in that sense; like a line in a song that could be written in no other way, yet just couldn't come out right when sung (a problem the Vampire was very familiar with).

She had very nearly stopped floating in surprise when it had been uttered, which also hadn't happened for several centuries. It would have been quite the sight, Marceline the Vampire Queen of legendary fame and power, so dumbfounded and stunned by a forgotten, overused trope that had been found in terribly written books about alien invasions and mad scientists.

Marceline could imagine a thousand ways she could have come across it as she was now: in an old film, Heat Signature perhaps, in the frenzied scrawls of Simon or perhaps even the polar mind of the Ice King by way of a vocal slip, the Crown unintentionally preserving a fragmented remnant of her oldest friend who now certainly was a mockery of the phrase, and skip by it without even realizing it was in front of her. No, the fact that it had been spoken in conversation was vital, incredibly so. Who was speaking it held some weight as well.

"I worry for him, you know? He's only human…" Princess Bubblegum had murmured, her voice thick and grainy like a hardier variant of that which she consisted of, rather than the light and bubbly giggle Marceline was used to and would often seek when depressed. Ten hours in the lab concocting an antidote will do that to you, especially when the Princess's only company was a dead-silent Vampire and occasionally Peppermint Butler bringing them food.

Marceline almost missed it; it was very close. Immediately, her mind had begun to dissect the phrase like a hawk gashing a mouse, wondering at first where the Princess had picked it up. She was bored out of her mind as it were, of no real use in the situation, ignoring those reasons she knew she couldn't face, let alone voice. Reasons Bubblegum would never understand, would just call her a monster for even considering.

They had an odd enough relationship as it was, a long-lasting but always volatile friendship where one day they would adore each other's company and the next they would spend hour upon hour at each other's throats. Marceline knew it was her fault, knew how insane she drove the pink girl, and while she played it off merrily as being a cheeky butt, it was simply because Bubblegum seemed completely set on, to some degree, understanding her; her, the Vampire Queen who had witnessed more than she could imagine. Any understanding would be achieved only through sheer pain for both of them, something Marceline considered a colossal waste of effort. She had enough pain, thank you very much.

But Marceline understood Bonnibel, oh, she understood her from every physical feature, be it her soft, luscious scent, to those of the mental and even spiritual variety, things the Princess had never come close to voicing. How desperately she flung herself into science, praying it could solve a dead-world's problems, how torn she was between pushing the last human away and pulling him in close, and how thoroughly that dilemma cut her through.

Marceline frowned, convincing herself that drowning herself once more in this subject, especially in this given moment, was a terrible idea. But still, her mind pressed on.

Bubblegum simply hadn't been the same since she had left a scar on his young face, her game of cat and mouse with her suitor finally resulting in a physical manifestation of the pain she had caused him. Fitting, in the darkest way, especially if the rumors about him and the Princess of the Fire Kingdom breaking up proved to be true. Judging by Bubblegum's recent mood, a mix between happier than Marceline had seen her since she had inexplicably turned thirteen again, and lower than when the hero had finally moved onto another woman (THAT had been a fun week), she guessed they were.

Marceline had never lied to herself; just as she could never catch the Princess's favor in the way she wished, and therefore hadn't tried, Bubblegum and Finn were doomed to never hold each other, though not as doomed as a human dating a Fire Elemental, which was just plain idiotic.

It wasn't one thing, either, but so many factors, so many combined nuances that led to brittle, smashed feelings that would never allow the friends to last. Marceline thought it was commendable they had lasted even until now. She wanted to play a role, but she had been dealt a bad hand, as usual, and Marceline was awfully adept at folding.

She spared a moment to stare at the pink girl, playing scientist, the expired phrase she had muttered far, far from her mind now. So deliberate, so calculating. So ignorant, seeing the forest for the trees and spending her time pruning every leaf in equal measure. Bent over in her books, as if words could stopper death for very long. As if it wouldn't be much better to appreciate the potential joy in front of her rather than get lost in rules in a land that held virtually none.

Half of her longed to slap Bonnie across the face, scream into her that he was worth it, that she was wasting her time ruling over a bunch of Splenda-baked idiots, that she was staring down the truest happiness she would ever find and whistling as its heartbeat was cut in half over and over. Half of her. Only half. The other side knew it was fucking useless, so she did nothing. Just floated in the dim and dank lab, aware that in some hilarious twist of fate that her presence was somehow something comforting in a trying time, when her thoughts were so vicious and melancholy and raw.

Nothing could get Bubblegum to see the truth, and so she didn't bother. It was funny; Marceline loved the look on people's faces when they realized she was so much more than she seemed. When suddenly the neurons clicked, the jaw dropped, and what seemed like an emotionally despondent and subsequently obsessed-with-pranking-the-hell-out-of-people-for-catharsis, undeniably cool Vampire chick that owned a bass converted out of an axe was actually one of the most powerful beings in the world. They just never took the next step, never combined her living in the direct aftermath of an age that contained the pinnacle of information with a thousand years to mull over its contents.

So she didn't bother to tell people the truth, because they couldn't fathom it. Time and fate had taken the only person who could understand and had twisted him into a monstrous wreck of ice constantly cracking into itself, leaving smaller and smaller pieces. And in front of her, determined to find some rare formula that would prolong Finn's life for some insignificant span, stood Bonnibel Bubblegum, equally the fool as Simon Petrikov's shadow. And that wasn't a statement the undead-girl made lightly; the Ice King was so insane she sometimes couldn't even believe who he had once been.

Marceline hated it. All of it. Wanted to do something about it. Couldn't. Some days she would lie to herself, and say she could accomplish what she desperately wanted; could keep Finn alive for a long while. Could convince Bonnibel to accept his courting. Could revive Simon from his hibernation. But the realist, the part so foreign to her yet so natural, the half that had NO business whispering those words in the back of her brain did so with bitter ache:

"You're only human. Is that what you just said?" Marceline replied cooly, fifteen minutes after the Princess had spoken the phrase. Bubblegum stopped working for a moment, placing a marker in the tome she had been scouring and turning to face the Vampire.

Marceline's eyes matched the chocolaty orbs of the girl in front of her, reading her easily; the Princess was both irked that Marceline would bother to interrupt her for something so seemingly trivial, and therefore filled with the burning desire to know why she had done so. Just like Bonnibel, to always assume there was an answer that made sense.

"I said _he's _only human, Marceline," The Princess responded harshly, shaking her head. She waited for a reply, a grand gesture of explanation from the Vampire Queen, and when none came she scowled. "And what does that have to do with anything I'm doing? I need to work on this… it's vital. I appreciate your company, but—"

"Everything," Marceline said emptily, no longer meeting the Princess's gaze. "It has everything to do with what you're doing." Marceline frowned, sighing. "I'm sorry Bonnie. I'll go. Nothing good will ever come of this."

"Oh, please, Marceline… don't speak gibberish and then leave as if you let loose a revelation. You're so archaic sometimes," Bubblegum muttered, turning back to her work.

Marceline's frowned etched deeper into her face, the Princess's words hurting more than she could know. Her mouth opened and closed again and again, her heart simultaneously commanding her to and warning her not to speak. The prior won out, for once.

"I always want to say the truth, but in the end I know it will just hurt. So I go through the motions, accidentally always slipping out more than I should, but never enough for anyone to put the pieces together. Just enough for them to think I'm a pathetic monster that strings people along for the fun of it," Marceline said, a worn tint to her voice, her apathy somehow growing.

Bubblegum was caught off guard by everything about that statement, from Marceline's serious reply to a snarky insult, to her muted voice, to the way she must have seemed to barely be floating when the Princess spun on the spot. A moment passes, a swallow, and then, "Fine, explain it to me. I love the truth. Tell me. How does the phrase 'Only human' have any merit to this moment?" For once, there was a lack of boasting. Not exactly trust, but enough interest to be civil.

"I warned you," Marceline muttered, dropping to the floor, setting herself on the Princess's plane, a motion that caused some unease and trepidation to seep into Bubblegum's usually unbreakable demeanor. "You're saying this work is vital, that you have to go all through the night trying to save him. That it will matter. It doesn't."

Oh, how belligerently ANGRY those words made Bonnibel. If only her thick gelatinous body even had the ability to crack, her knuckles would be doing so in full force, her face more than making up for a lack of audible anger, her typically serene and other worldly expression pissed beyond words.

But Marceline wasn't willing to just say it, even now. The Princess needed to dig a little, at least. Meet her halfway, lull her into a terrible decision that would only lead to Marceline careening into a rage that would make Bubblegum's look like a silly child's tantrum. Somehow, she knew that it didn't matter what Bonnibel did; Marceline had finally had enough. Having her heart broken in the first place was bad enough. Now the Princess was breaking Finn's, and had the nerve to use that phrase as she did so?

"THAT was what you had to say?" Bubblegum hissed, raising her hand in a hilarious attempt at indicating she was going to strike the Vampire. Marceline did not move an inch, nor change her expression. "I'll be happy to let Finn know when he wakes up that you don't care for him in the slightest." Her expression fell from cold rage to legitimate disappointment. "I can't believe you would say something like that, Marceline."

The Vampire didn't speak, staring straight at the Princess but not… at her. Almost through her. Bubblegum waited patiently for a response yet again before sighing and turning around, no doubt already trying to form a decree to let Marceline know she would quite prefer to be alone. The words were probably just on her lips when it happened.

"Do you know what it's like to only be human? I almost do, at least enough to give you the idea," Marceline whispered suddenly, though Bubblegum didn't give her the benefit of the doubt by turning around, assuming her friend was simply spinning her wheels. She had even grabbed a test tube when Marceline continued, causing the Princess to slowly halt, realizing the Vampire was saying things in a voice Bubblegum had never heard her use before. A sorrow laced voiced riddled with pain.

"It's looking up in the sky and watching bombs rain down upon you, knowing there's nothing you can do, knowing that only by the laws of chaos theory are you going to live or die." _A man landed in front her of her; well, half a man. The thought sent some kind of demented giggle into her brain, her sanity having passed hours ago, the moment her mother had been cut down in front of her. He was just like her, wasn't he? No, even in his wretched state, at least he was human. Dead, but whole. Nothing like her. _

"Watching your mother fall apart when she realizes she was tricked into the miracle of birth only to produce a monster, with less than a decade to go before all out nuclear war." _Eyes that could never love her just stared, piercing and cruel. Much harsher than her father's. Much. For not the first time, Marceline wondered whether the demon world would be better than this place known as Earth. A place where she at the least wouldn't be hidden for her blood, for the tiny points in her mouth she sometimes accidentally slammed against her tongue, no comforting arms willing to hold her as she cried in pain. _

"Being only human is watching a man you admire more than the rest of the world combined slowly slip into despair, and blaming yourself for it only to realize a thousand years later that there was nothing you could have ever done." _Simon smiled at her, and as much as Marceline loved his smile, kind of goofy and oh-so-warm, she couldn't help but see sadness pour from it. But she ignored it, pressing into him; despite his smile, he was so cold, so it was odd when they hugged. But she didn't mind. Anything for Simon. _

Marceline vaguely realized she was crying as her next words died with a quiver of her throat. She pressed on. "Only being human is watching the entire world turn from a place of hatred, and war, and evil into some fucking LSD wasteland of magic and insanity." _Marceline raised an eyebrow. A Princess made out of Bubblegum? That was a new one. She had half a mind to take a bite and chew, but the little girl seemed sweet enough, too sweet for such an act. Then again, that was the problem wasn't it? _

"Realizing you were never human to begin with, just some twisted, half breed monster, realizing your mother was right, realizing it was a pity the bombs didn't rip you to shreds like they did your home. That someone, anyone else but YOU should have survived to carry on your race. _"Am I a monster, daddy?" Hunson Abadeer stared at her, knowing exactly what she meant, but rather than utter the truth, smiled sadly. He loved her so much, more than her mother ever could. And she could only hate him for it. _

"Only human is realizing there's nothing you can do. Nothing. That everything will die. That you have no effect on that fact." Marceline paused, realizing she was at an impasse. She continued, her voice growing louder.

"Only human is seeing something you thought you would never see again; a kid. A real, actual boy. A human. Who immediately proceeds to prove to you he has the fucking death wish to end all death wishes, and that everyone who knows him thinks it's just AWESOME that the only true remnant left of MY race runs around solving the problems of beings so much more powerful, and infinite, and capable than he is. And all I can do is laugh, because in a blink of my eyes he'll be gone, and there's nothing I can do. Just laugh, try to find the blackest humor in this world."

Marceline's tongue was white hot, the words she spat melted iron, but she couldn't stop. Not until the blade formed. Not until she pierced Bubblegum's heart and let her KNOW what the phrase she uttered entitled.

"Oh, and not ordinary problems, oh no! He has to save the world. The whole conglomerate of royalty in Ooo, Glob forbid, can't find out how to lock up that, that fucking lunatic that used to be my closest friend, that can't figure out a way to convince someone who's actually immortal to take care of the Lich, who can't, can't even hold him, can't even tell him she loves him because SHE'S so caught up in her fucking kingdom, who sits in her Glob damned lab talking about how important it is that she saves his life, when she sends him out time after time to his very death to protect her honor, whatever that means, and honestly thinks tacking on a few more years with her little science potion makes any difference.

"THAT'S WHAT BEING ONLY HUMAN IS LIKE!" Marceline roared, her shirt soaking with tears, finally spinning around to see an equally decimated Bubblegum staring at her in pure and utter awe. "AND BEFORE YOU TELL ME HOW HARD IT IS FOR YOU, YOU DON'T KNOW! You…" Marceline trailed off, cupping her forehead in her hand. "And you know what the best part is? It's that he's the best one I've ever seen. The pinnacle of my race. Blindly caring, blindly loving, so unafraid of death that sometimes I honestly believe he has nothing to fear. But the other half knows better. Don't you ever use that phrase again. Even when I speak it it's a mockery."

Bubblegum stood in shock, seemingly about to fall over, but just catching herself every other moment. Marceline felt empathy, and on top of it her own exhaustion, and so many insane urges; running forth and taking Bonnibel, right here, something still attracting her to the Candy Princess after massacring every facet of her existence; taking Finn, prolonging their dead race with some twisted spawn; finally ending herself.

Her heart, as it sometimes did in moments of such emotion, was actually willed to beat, and she could feel her soiled blood race through her body. Fairly quickly and quietly her thoughts faded away, and she was left with a few choice words left to speak.

"I hate you so much for not loving him when I know you do," Marceline whispered, her voice a ghost of its former bombast. "He nearly dies everyday, and still comes running back to you. Glob, I wish you would at least give him that. It drives me insane, to watch him suffer for you."

Her mouth twisted blindly for a moment, unable to settle on a shape to fully convey her anger, and that is when she completely lost control. It came with no rage or shouting, only delivered in the same haunting whisper, her eyes empty of tears but probably looking all the more dejected because of it.

"At least I can understand how you… Glob dammit, Bonnibel, how you can't love me." Glob, she immediately rejected those words, barely able to keep her eyes on the Princess, who face more or less snapped at that particular revelation. "You think you're so bloody smart, and you are, but sometimes…" Marceline trailed off, breathing softly as what was left of her tantrum dissipated into the thick air.

It was a long time before the Princess could say anything, who knows how many years of tension and misunderstood feeling exploding with such force Marceline was surprised no one had come to check on them. The poor pink girl (as though Marceline hated things about her, she loved Bonnibel deeply) was a mess, her body looking like it was nearly melting, her eyes still steadily leaking. "M-Marceline, I'm so sorry, I didn't—" Bubblegum began, halting herself, and sobbing. "Oh, oh Glob… I… you know I care for Finn, but, it's just… and you, I never even…"

"Bonnie, I watch him destroy himself for you every day, and it kills me," Marceline said blankly, cutting her off before she could comment on their own relationship and now staring out the window, feeling spent beyond belief. "Do you know how much I want him for myself? The last human. At first I restrained because I knew I would only hurt him… just like I restrained with you, and then I saw he had you, and I was happy. I thought that two of my favorite people in the world would get to be something, but no. Rather than that, I'm here with you, in a dungeon, watching you pouring some ancient chemicals together so he'll just make it to fifteen, if that."

Marceline bit her lip, viewing the broken girl in front of her. This was time for drastic measures, damn the consequences. "You march into that infirmary and tell him the truth, and stop these Glob damned charades, or I'll do it myself," Marceline whispered, nearly dead silent. "I, half-human, will end the last human. I refuse to watch him turn into another sick play-thing for this world or watch another person I love fade away. He will NOT become Simon. I refuse. You either accept that he deserves to be happy for however long he lives on Ooo, and that you deserve to be by proxy, or I will end him."

Marceline flew out the window at those hollow words, made only as a final bluff, immediately turning invisible and flying back in silently. She had long ago given up hope of silly superstitions, but found herself imitating such an act from her childhood and crossing her fingers in good luck. Bubblegum was still just as much of a mess, and went on being a mess for a good long while, crying her eyes out and making all sorts of sounds of pure misery that were so foreign coming from her body, making Marceline feel tremendously guilty for not at least hugging her before leaving. But she knew drastic action was the only thing that would get anything done. Or at least the only thing she was willing to try after so much middling.

It took the Princess at least an hour to gather herself enough to begin work again, and then another hour after that for her to actually finish the potion. Always the scientist, she injected some of the venom from the deadly Walrus-Fly-Trap that had attacked Finn into a peach biomass, turning it bright purple, and delicately placed the antidote in moments later, smiling wearily as it reverted to its original color.

Wasting no time besides a suspicious look over her shoulder that Marceline had suspectected, the Princess sped to the infirmary, the Vampire following behind her with bated breath. Not needing to breathe was really awesome sometimes. Sneaking situations was one of those times.

Bubblegum stood over Finn's heavily bandaged body for a long while when she arrived, removing his cap and softly stroking his blond hair. Marceline could only imagine the thoughts going through the Princess's mind; they would have to have a talk themselves, that was for sure. Their friendship might have passed a point of any possible return, but Marceline didn't give a fuck. She needed to make this work.

"Oh… Finn…" Bubblegum whispered, and Marceline knew by the distinct quiver in her voice that she was tearing up again. "Marceline was right. I've always called you a silly boy, but who saves me time and time again? Who does whatever they can to make me smile, and never asks for anything in return? Who else is so kind and wonderful… I guess I just fell into the trap of royalty, of bitterness. Even I, a Princess of candy, came to believe without even realizing it that acting as such in such a dangerous world is foolish."

Bubblegum leaned down, kissing him on the forehead, and Marceline felt her heart warm. Without another word, the Princess took some of the antidote, unwrapped the boy's poisoned wounds, and applied it liberally. It was a good think the Walrus-Fly-Trap venom needed a very long time to induce death, as it had pretty much gotten every part of his pudgy form possible.

Slowly but surely, the boy stirred, at first wincing but then yawning at the sensation of healing, glancing around the room. Marceline blushed a slight bit when she realized that Finn was now naked but for a small cloth Bonnibel had placed around his genitals to preserve his modesty, and then blushed even harder as she imagined the delicious red that must have been adjourning the Princess's face at that very moment.

"Er… stupid plant… imma punch you in yo pistils…" The boy muttered, and Bubblegum giggled ferocious while Marceline had to swallow hard to keep from doing the same. "Eh? Peebles… hey, where am—OH SWEET ANCIENT VESTAGES OF POLKA DANCING, I'M NUDE!" Bubblegum burst out laughing at that, and Marceline began to physically choke herself to remain silent. That kid certainly was nutty.

"Hey, Finn," Bubblegum whispered, her voice sweet and light, after Finn had calmed down a bit, though was clearly very… confused. "Sorry you're kinda… unclothed. I had to heal you with an antidote, and you kind of had wounds all over the place. Except for, um, down there, thankfully." Marceline broke into a smile, visibly remembering the look of fascination on Finn's face when she had given him a jock-strap for his birthday. She had figured that, even if he was probably going to get himself killed, it was best to protect certain areas above all else.

"Why, why were you fighting a Walrus-Fly-Trap? Those things are terrifying…" Bonnibel whispered, her hand lingering on his arm delicately. Marceline was ecstatic; this was really happening… "I mean, the lumpin' tusks are everywhere, and then there are the needle whiskers it fires at you, and then the fin's have the venom, obviously…"

Marceline took the risk of hovering in a little closer, curious as to why the doofus had rubbed a Walrus-Fly-Trap the wrong way herself.

"Oh… you'll think I'm stupid, I'm so sorry for making you worry and have to make a potion and all that biz…" Finn muttered, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly with his free arm and then wincing.

"Shh, don't hurt yourself," The Princess whispered, gently setting that arm back down and leaving her hand over it as well. "You can tell me, it's fine, Finn. Honest." Marceline only needed to see Finn's dopey smile to know how kind Bubblegum's must be at the moment.

"W-Well," The boy began, gulping. "I'm sure you've heard that, cause, well, you know everything, inside the Walrus-Fly-Trap's belly, there lies a rare and beautiful flower that barely anyone has seen in forevs," He went on, nervously avoiding her eyes and ironically staring very close to where Marceline was floating, which scared the fluffing jingle-jangles out of her for a moment. Then she began to consider his words, and her eyes widened. That… that dweeb wasn't stupid enough to…

"And, well, I was trying to get one for you. I thought you would like it, ya know," He concluded quietly, looking sullen with regret.

"…Oh, Finn… you're too sweet," Bubblegum whispered, her voice cracking again, before Marceline, with a grimace, watched the Princess lean her head into her own chest and begin to sob. The Vampire had the distinct feeling that this was the most emotional the Princess had ever become in front of anyone person.

"P-Princess… please don't cry… I'm fine," Finn said sadly, tentatively reaching out and stroking her hair.

"N-N-No you're not," Bonnibel Bubblegum cried out, collapsing into his chest and gripping onto him tightly, Finn's reaction equal amounts empathy and surprise. "You're lying in this G-Glob damned bed because I-I'm an idiot and have made you jump through hoop after hoop t-trying to impress me, and I'm s-s-so sorry Finn. I-It's, it's all my fault, I put you through this. G-Glob. You don't have to. You don't have to do anything like that for me." She paused, her resolve returning in full force. "EVER. Don't you EVER even THINK about going NEAR one of those plants again Finn! I don't care how much you want to get me one of those flowers!"

"O-Okay Peebles, but I mean, I did get one. It's in my cap," Finn replied in his best attempt at a soothing voice, and Bubblegum shot up, immediately grasping his hat from the nightstand the precise moment he reached for it and realized it wasn't on his head.

"Uh, uh I had to take it off for the antidote," Bubblegum blurted out, Marceline letting out the teensiest of snickers. Finn's face was a perfect mess of complete confusion and arousal. She couldn't take it. How bloody cute they were, how red the blushes were. She very much so wished she was part of this, rather than watching it like a stalker. But, she was a Vampire, so… that was in her job description.

Coughing awkwardly, the Princess dug into his hat, and, sure enough, pulled out the flower. And what a flower.

"O-Oh Finn…" Bonnibel whispered, delicately holding the bright red… well, calling it a flower was out of the question. It was more like someone had turned a ruby inside out and planted it on a spiraling, jade stem, and the resulting creation was staggering. Marceline licked her lips in hunger at sight, but immediately cursed herself for even CONSIDERING sucking the red out of something so brilliant.

"It's so beautiful. I mean, you're a stupid butt for going and nearly dying for this flower, but…" Bubblegum's words caught in her throat. "You're the sweetest stupid butt there ever was." Finn's blush was reaching new levels of red every moment, at this point growing nearly as red as the flower itself.

"I-I, uh…" Finn muttered, utterly lost for words. "I'm glad you like it, PB."

"I'll keep it with me forever," She whispered sweetly, and Marceline nearly gasped as the Princess picked a petal off of it, gasping herself in mock surprise as she did so, as if it had been an accident. "Oh… well, I think I have a good use for this," She said, silencing Finn's horrified gasp and picking up the petal and placing it on the nightstand. "I'll give it to Marceline the next time I see her… I kind of, owe her for something. Really badly. So much that words would never be enough."

Marceline's eyes must have managed to produce some more since her absolute sob-fest, because she was indeed starting to leak tears once more. She felt her heart rise… there was no way the Princess could mean what she hoped…

Finn burst into a toothy grin, and replied, "Yeah, that would be bossa nova! Marceline would love it! That's so sweet of you PB. What's the favor, though?" Bubblegum blushed, and Marceline suddenly realized that the Princess was aware, or at least guessing, that she was in the room.

"…It's a long story," Bubblegum replied, smiling weakly, and Marceline felt a wealth of emotions in her thin, invisible form. "But… um, Finn, I know you might still be getting over Flame Princess—" The poor boy immediately reached for a small charred area of his skin, and both girls winced—"In more ways than one, but… I've been thinking hard, and if you'd like to, I think it would be really, um, adorbz and, you know, bow-wowzers if we were like, I mean… get it?"

Marceline cackled silently at Bonnibel's utter flop of a proposal as Finn raised an eyebrow, completely lost beyond any hope of being found at the moment, and the Princess smacked her head; always an odd sound, bubblegum hitting bubblegum. "I mean… would you like to date?" She proposed awkwardly, wrapping her soft fingers in Finn's own, the last true human of Ooo falling silent and wide-eyed.

"T-That would be badminton smackin', Princess," He whispered after a short while. "I mean… I thought I was…"

"You were old enough to attack a Walrus-Fly-Trap just to win my heart," Princess Bubblegum responded, squeezing his hand tightly. "Besides, I'm a humanoid construct of Bubblegum… age shouldn't be too big of an issue for me to deal with. Nor should the laws of a kingdom I rule. I mean, you are immature Finn, but that's one of the things I love about you."

"Dawww," Finn replied, his face nearly covered in his large gooey smile. "You sure I'm not tweakin' on Walrus venom?"

"Positive!" Bonnibel replied with a smile. "Now… it is very late, and while you could stay the night in the infirmary, you are healed…"

"Oh, no probz, I'll call Jake! Er, I guess I'll just walk, actually!" Finn replied, the enthusiasm of no longer being bed-ridden overriding his common sense, jumping up and wincing immediately before flashing a thumbs up sign. Which as it turns out, wasn't all that he was flashing, considering he had only been wearing a small cloth not connected to his body by anything but gravity.

"Oh my," Bubblegum whispered, her eyes falling downward before shooting back up. "Er, Finn, your Éclair is, er…" She made a few awkward motions with her hands, Marceline at this point nearly dying from both the adorable dialogue between the two and now the fact that Finn had accidentally flashed his new girlfriend. With a fully baked Éclair, she added mentally with a toothed grin.

Finn looked down, and after nearly fainting ripped the bed-sheets off of the bed, and wrapped them around himself, then proceeded to continue looking down in utter embarrassment.

"And, um, what I was going to say is that if you wanted to you could just sleep in my room but it would be probably a good idea if we got some pants on you first," Bubblegum blurted out, and Marceline had the vague feeling Finn had no idea what she had really said as he nodded. "So, we can, um snuggle," She added to make sure he was on the same page.

Finn's face heated up to the point that Marceline jokingly wondered if it might start producing solar rays hot enough to burn her at this rate, and nodded once more, but this time much more slowly and deliberately.

"Well, wonderful!" Bubblegum shouted, throwing her arms up in the air. "Er, I'll ask Peppermint to get you some pants… or, your old pants. Yeah. Um. Let's do that. You can wait in my room while that happens, just… keep the blanket on for now." Another blank nod as Finn obviously tried to wrestle with how much of a buffoon he was, but the Princess, despite being more embarrassed than she had been in a long, long time, patted him on the back, and said, "Don't worry, it was nice! Let's just hope, um, I won't see it again for awhile. Er… nevermind. Let's go!"

They exited the room, and Marceline waited a good minute to make sure they were gone and not coming back before her back arched at a nearly painful angle as she let loose a torrent of laughter that had been building the past ten minutes. It took her quite awhile to drain all of it out of her; leave it to Finn to, when she was as close to complete despair as she ever had been, completely break her out of her funk.

She floated down lightly, plucking the red petal from the nightstand, and staring at it hungrily. So kind of Bonnie… and though Marceline wished she hadn't broken the flower in the slightest, she would not deny that red. Sticking her tooth gently into the firm petals, she sucked tenderly, nearly moaning at the exquisite shade warming her entire body.

Even when she finished the feeling lingered, and she spent a good five minutes making sure she was quite done, only realizing how much of a sexual act she was performing until she removed it from her lips, blushing madly. Unwilling to part with it, even in its white form, she placed it in her pocket, and flew out the window; but rather than heading through the night air and towards her cave, she floated over to Bubblegum's window, still invisible as she crossed into the girl's room.

Her face broke into yet another smile as she stared at Bubblegum cradling Finn into her side as she stared up at the ceiling, a content and almost dream like smile across her face, while the young boy simply leaned into her, obviously and completely in love.

_It won't last…_ Some part of her muttered, and she frowned. _What does this change? He's still only human, he will die someday. She will be alone, and still want nothing to do with you. _

"Maybe being human is more than being weak, more than feeling pain," Marceline murmured in a deadly whisper, almost as if she was threatening her worse half. "Maybe it's embracing that struggle and loving life despite it. Maybe it's not the half of me that causes the pain at all."

There was no response, and Marceline smiled triumphantly. She was not going to let anything ruin the fact that by nearly shouting Bonnibel to death and then threatening to murder Finn she had somehow gotten them together. It was just too bizarre, and therefore made oodles of sense.

With a small look of longing, not looking forward to the trip home, she turned, only to be halted completely by a soft, spoken word: "Stay."

Marceline immediately checked to see if she was still invisible, and when she confirmed she was turned to see Bubblegum staring straight at her regardless.

"I wasn't sure before, but I know you're here, Marcy. I heard you talking," The pink girl replied, sitting up in her bed, and frowning. "Please, stay… I understand we are in a weird place, but you… you… thank you. If you want to stay and sleep, you can, and we can discuss it in the morning."

Marceline made no movement, tempted to call the Princess's bluff; as happy as she was with the outcome of the night, she wasn't quite sure where it left her. She wanted to stay beyond belief, but couldn't see through Bonnibel's intentions at all, and didn't want to set her hopes high for anything more than she had in the past.

"Please, Marceline, stop toying with both of us, and get in bed," Bubblegum whispered, lying back down and curling into Finn, who giggled in his sleep. "We both know you're going to. After all, you're only human."

Marceline snorted in disbelief, swooping down and into the sheets effortlessly, startling the Princess even though she had no doubt been hoping for that very result. Marceline's thin, but strong arms grasped the pink body in front of her, her hands just scraping Finn's as well, and whispered, nearly silently, "And you're the only ones who make me feel that way."

* * *

_I can't even begin to explain the number of revisions. I'm still paranoid there's just too much going on here, and at times I think it's horribly over-worded, but for better or worse this is where I wanted it and I like it. I can generally tell that's the case when I get to the Author's Note and only want to discuss the process, not the fic itself. _

_Marceline and Bubblegum's interactions always are fascinating to me, and I really wish they appeared in conjunct more often. Both of them are able to push the other out of their comfort zone to such a degree that it's just mesmerizing to watch.  
_

_I'm hoping that somewhere down the line, this will get another chapter, or maybe a sequel (with some Fubbeline, which I've never really tried perhaps), but this is pretty standalone, so… yeah. Now to get off my buns and work on Stormchild. Thanks for reading!_


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